With the
approval of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC), the
State Council issuedthe Opinions on Implementing Healthy China Action(hereinafter referred to as the “Opinions”), and the General Office
of the State Council issued the Notice on Printing and Distributing the Plan
for Organizing, Implementing and Assessing the Healthy China Action (hereinafter
referred to as the “Implementation andAssessment Plan”). The
Healthy China Promotion Committee (hereinafter referred to as the “Promotion Committee”)was established at the national level and The Healthy China Action
(2019-2030) (hereinafter referred to as the “Healthy China Action”)
was issued. We refer to these three documents collectively as documents related
to the Healthy China Action.Next,
I would like to give you a brief introduction to the three documents mentioned
above.

I.?Significance
of the Documents

A
healthy population is a key symbol of a prosperous nation. Prevention is the
most economic and effective measure to maintain people’s health. The CPC
Central Committee and the State Council attach great importance to the people’s
health. In 2016, the State Council issued the “Healthy China 2030” Planning
Outline, which put forward the goals and tasks of building a healthy China.
General Secretary Xi Jinping formally put forward to build a healthy China in
the report of the 19th National Congress of the CPC, and reiterated that we
should carry out the policy of putting prevention first, combing the prevention
with treatment together, enforcing holistic measures with full participation
and collaboration of all society and at all levels, and ensure the delivery of
comprehensive lifecycle health services for all people.

Premier
Li Keqiang has made several specific instructions for building healthy China,
emphasizing the importance of strengthening intervention and prevention as well
as health care tailored to health determinants, and relevant work has been
deployed in the Government Work Report 2019. Vice Premier Sun Chunlan
has made a number of targeted studies and work arrangements.

Since
the founding of the People’s Republic of China, especially the 18th National
Congress of the CPC, China’s health services have made profound progress thanks
to the concerted efforts made by all relevant ministries and actively pushed
forward by local governments. People’s health has been continuously improved,
the main health indicators of Chinese people are generally better than the
average level of middle- and high-income countries. In 2018, China’s life expectancy
was 77.0 years, with an increase of 0.3 years from 76.7 years in 2017, the
infant mortality rate dropped to 6.1‰, the maternal mortality rate dropped to
18.3/100,000, and the major health-related risk factors were initially
controlled.

However,
we also recognize that we’re still facing new challenges regarding to people’s
health, which is seriously threatened by five chronic diseases currently. With
the acceleration of industrialization, urbanization and population aging, the lifestyle
and disease spectrum of Chinese residents are changing constantly. The health
literacy level of residents is low, with the unhealthy lifestyles such as smoking,
excessive drinking, lack of exercise, unbalanced diet etc., resulting in
increasing health problems. In China, there are 270 million hypertensive
patients; 13 million stroke patients and 11 million coronary heart disease
patients; more than 97 million diabetic patients; nearly 100 million chronic
obstructive pulmonary disease patients; about 3.8 million new cancer cases each
year, with an annual increase of 3.9%. Chronic non-communicable diseases
including cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases, cancer, chronic
respiratory diseases, diabetes among others account for 88% of the total deaths
and more than 70% of the total disease burden. The prevention and control of
major infectious diseases such as hepatitis, tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS is still
at severe situation. Mental health, occupational health and endemic diseases
cannot be ignored. In addition, some health problems or related issues among
those vulnerable populations need to be solved urgently, such as birth defects,
myopia and obesity among primary and secondary school students, early childhood
development, as well as chronic diseases in the elderly.

In order to
effectively address the health challenges, the State Council set up a working
group in 2018 led by the National Health Commission in collaboration with over 30
government agencies, including the Ministry of Education and the General
Administration of Sport, carried out studies in collaboration on health needs of
the public and formulated documents relating to the Healthy China Action.
These efforts have highlighted President Xi’s thoughts of shifting the priority
of health services from treatment to people’s health and are expected to change
people’s concepts, make prevention a priority, and strengthen disease
prevention and health promotion. While every individual is encouraged to take
primary responsibility for his/her own health, the government should mobilize
all stakeholders to disseminate health knowledge, strengthen primary
intervention programs so as to increase people’s healthy life expectancy. These
measures will help people in accessing affordable medical care.

At
present, the CPC theme education of "Remain true to original aspiration
and keep the mission firmly in mind" is being carried out. In this view,
the implementation of the Healthy China Action will make the people live
a healthy and happy life, and will contribute to achieving the goal of national
rejuvenation.

II.
Main Contents of the Documents

Changing
concepts and safeguarding comprehensive lifecycle health of the public. The Opinionsput forward that the Healthy China Action should adhere to
people-centered approach, insist on reform and innovation, carry out the
guiding principles of medical and health work in the new era, strengthen
responsibilities of government, society and individuals, accelerate the shift
of the concept and service mode of health service from the treatment-centered
to the people’s health-centered, and develop and improve health education
system, popularize health knowledge, guide the people to form a correct concept
of health, strengthen primary intervention, establish healthy lifestyles,
ecological environment and social environment in order to prolong healthy
lifespan and lay a solid foundation for building a healthy China in an effort
to maintain people’s all-round health during full life cycle.

The
Healthy China Action adheres to the basic principles of “popularizing knowledge, improving health literacy; keeping
self-discipline, advocating healthy life styles; strengthening primary
intervention, improving service; involving all people, sharing the benefit through
collaborative building”. The action emphasizes preventing and controlling
diseases from the beginning, focusing on the main problems and key diseases
affecting people’s health with a highlight
of health promotion advocacy and mobilization.

Consistently
implementing a 10-year national disease prevention and health promotion programmes.
The Opinions is a document guiding disease prevention and health
promotion at the national level for the next ten years. It sets out the overall
goals for the Healthy China Action by 2022 and 2030 respectively. By
2022, the health promotion policy system will be basically established; the
health literacy level of the whole people will be steadily improved; the
healthy lifestyles will be promoted rapidly; the rising trend of the incidence
of major chronic diseases will be curbed; the key infectious diseases, serious
mental disorders, endemic diseases and occupational diseases will be
effectively prevented and controlled, with a gradual reduction of disability
and death caused by these diseases. The health status of the key population
groups will be improved significantly. By 2030, the health literacy level of
the whole people will be greatly improved; the healthy lifestyle will be
basically popularized; the main health determinants will be effectively
controlled; the premature mortality rate caused by major chronic diseases will
be significantly reduced; the average healthy life expectancy will be greatly
improved, and the level of the main health indicators of residents will meet
the level of high-income countries, and health equity will be basically
realized.

Taking
targeted measures and implementing 15 specific programmes. The Opinionsprovides a holistic solution on improving health awareness level, balanced
diet, physical activities, smoking control, mental health and other aspects,
and addresses health determinants in an all-round way; itfocuses on key
vulnerable populations such as women and children, primary and secondary school
students, laborers, and the elderly, and maintaining of the health during the
full life cycle; the Opinions strengthens the prevention and control of four
major chronic diseases including cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases,
cancer, chronic respiratory diseases, diabetes as well as other important
diseases such as infectious diseases and endemic diseases. Specific programmes were
also proposed with measures for disability prevention and rehabilitation
services and health promotion of residents in poor areas.

The Healthy
China Action specifies the implementation of 15 specific programmes and a
total of 124 main indicators were proposed, including outcome indicators (36),
individual and social recommendable indicators (48), and government performance
indicators (40). Among the 124 indicators, most of them (113 accounting for
91%) are predictive (48) and recommendable (65), and 11 indicators are compulsive.
In the process of selecting and determining these indicators, the scientificity
and feasibility of the indicators have been fully studied and demonstrated by
relevant authorities and experts.

Every programme
specifies its goals, indicators and approaches for implementation. Specific
tasks have been assigned for the government along with health advices proposed
to all society and the public. The programmes integrate the concept and requirements
of healthy China into all aspects of people’s daily work and life, and provide
effective approaches to transform the health priority from “treatment-centered”
to “health-centered”. All those programmes will be implemented through collaborative
efforts of the government, society, families and individuals, striving to prevent
people from sickness and less onset of disease, as a result, to prolong
their healthy lifespan and improve their quality of life.

III.?Ensuring
the Implementation of the Action

In
order to ensure the effective implementation of the Opinions and the Healthy
China Action, the General Office of the State Council has issued the Implementation
and Assessment Plan at the same time, which put forward specific
requirements from three aspects: establishing and improving the organizational
structure, strengthening monitoring and evaluation, and completing regular
assessments. The plan defines to set up the Promotion Committee with a specific
organizational structure and working mechanism established relying on the
National Patriotic Health Campaign Committee at the national level.
Furthermore, it defines the roles of organizations responsible for monitoring
and evaluation, data collection and results application in order to ensure the Healthy
China Action being implemented efficiently and orderly.

First of
all, the organizational structure has been developed. Relying on the National
Patriotic Health Campaign Committee, the?? Promotion Committee has
been established responsible for formulating and issuing the Healthy China
Action, coordinating and enforcing the implementation, monitoring,
assessment and other related work. The vice premier of the State Council responsible
for health cause was appointed as the head of the Promotion Committee. The
Office of the Promotion Committee was established in the National Health
Commission, and an Advisory Committee of Experts along with multiple working
groups (corresponding to 15 specific programmes) were also created under the
Promotion Committee. The document also calls on relevant ministries to actively
study the major issues related to building healthy China, formulate and
implement specific policies and measures in a timely manner, put forward annual
task proposals and implement them in accordance with the general deployment,
and properly publicize and interpret the contents of the Healthy China
Action.

The
second is to strengthen monitoring and evaluation, which is under the overall
leadership of the Promotion Committee. Each working group is responsible for
organizing and implementing specific programme. Based on existing statistical
data, relying on internet and big data, the progress of implementation regarding
key indicators and main tasks will be monitored. The Office of the Promotion
Committee will develop an overall monitoring and evaluation reports to be submitted
to the State Council, thereafter to release them in due time.

The
third is to complete regular assessments. The Office of the Promotion Committee
is responsible for organizing and implementing assessment under overall
leadership of the Promotion Committee, with technical support from the Advisory
Committee of Experts. A relatively stable framework of assessment indicators
has been established focusing on the main objectives and tasks of building a
healthy China. Major health indicators will be included in the performance
appraisal of the Party committees and governments at all levels. The results of
comprehensive appraisal will be notified after the approval of the Promotion
Committee. It will serve as an important reference for the comprehensive
appraisal and evaluation of senior management and leading cadres in the Party
committee and governments in all provinces (autonomous regions, municipalities)
and relevant departments, and also as reference for rewards and punishments.

The
Healthy China Action is launched at? important time of the 70th
anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China. It is a medium-
and long-term action for more than ten years. As a result, it will continue to
promote the priority shift from treatment-centered to health-centered, and
comprehensively put forward to the accomplishment of the key tasks related to
prevention and health promotion in the “Healthy China 2030” Planning Outline.
If the “Healthy China 2030” Planning Outline is regarded the guiding
principle for building healthy China, the Opinions and the Healthy
China Action will serve as the “road map” and “construction drawing” respectively.

Implementation
of the Healthy China Action will further release the health dividend, promote
coordinated development of economy and society, and lay a solid health
foundation for building an affluent society in all respects and a modern
socialist country. Next, we will conscientiously implement the decisions and
deployments of the CPC Central Committee and the State Council, support local
governments to formulate implementation plans in a timely manner tailored to
their actual conditions, refine specific action measures, strengthen monitoring,
inspection and tracking the results, persist on the efforts persistently to push
on the building of a healthy China, and eventually to prevent people from sickness
and less onset of disease in a way to share a healthy life through full
participation.